Elkhorn man pleads no contest to hiding gun in woods

 Jay T. Greenwald, accused of hiding a loaded handgun at Ski Slide Park last October during a youth football game in Ixonia, pleaded no contest in Jefferson County Circuit Court on Monday to endangering safety, storing a loaded firearm near a child and disorderly conduct.

The judge agreed to withhold sentencing and placed Greenwald, 42, on probation for 12 months with the following conditions:

• Send a letter of apology to the Oconomowoc Youth Football League and to the parents of the children who found the handgun Greenwald allegedly hid in the woods.
• Surrender the .40-caliber handgun used in the offense so that it could be destroyed.
• Pay $729 in fines and reimburse court-appointed attorney fees
• Undergo any assessment, treatment, therapies or counseling as may be required by his probation officer
• Maintain employment as deemed appropriate by his probation officer

Two other misdemeanor charges of endangering safety and leaving a loaded firearm near a child were dismissed, but read in.

According to the criminal complaint:

Greenwald attended an Oconomowoc Youth Football game on Oct. 13, 2012 legally and openly carrying a firearm in his front pocket. He told police after the incident that his fiancé and daughter had left to go grocery shopping and he did not want to leave the .40-caliber handgun in the car.

Greenwald was approached by several parents during the game who told him they were uncomfortable with him carrying the gun openly. He told police that he decided to hide the loaded gun in a wooded area near the park, using a metal spike and leaves to cover it up.

The gun was found by two children, ages 7 and 8. One of the children said they were playing in the woods near the field when they found the gun. The child picked it up and gave it to his grandfather, who unloaded it.

One of the parents involved in retrieving the gun said it had a bullet in the chamber. Greenwald denied leaving a bullet in the chamber and said one of the kids must have pulled back the slide.